OAKLEAF -Should have wore white !!!
It wouldn’t have mattered, if they would have wore pink or purple either.
Despite having the same colors and mascot, East Ridge purposely decided to wear the same color uniform combination as host Oakleaf.
Oakleaf was told East Ridge was wearing all black as well as “its white jerseys were being dry cleaned and packed for Vero Beach” according to the East Ridge coaches. Problem is those jerseys never made it there.
As the host Knights sent the visiting Knights back home feeling all black and blue after a 9-1 loss in the Class 8A regional final.
While it initially confused everyone who was who early on, it quickly became evident who was clearly who.
There was no confusion once the game got started though as the home Knights quickly established an early lead and sent the visiting Knights literally home packing and back to Clermont.
East Ridge pitcher Samantha Guider (18-3), which came into the game with 0.60 ERA and 185 strikeouts/41 walks, hadn’t face a lethal lineup as good as Oakleaf and was tattooed immediately.
With the bases loaded and one out, Angela Agurkis sent a Guider pitch off the top of the left center field fence clearing the bases scoring Kaylee Lambrecht and Rebecca Koskey, while Baylee Goddard scored on an errant throw on the play giving Oakleaf a quick 3-0 lead.
Establishing an early lead against the visiting Knights (27-3), who were making their first appearance in the Elite 8, seemed to rattle Guider. A three run first inning by the host Knights was the most runs the visiting Knights had given up in nearly a month.
Oakleaf kept up the pressure every inning loading the bases in both the second and third innings, Guider was able to get out of the second but not the third.
Right fielder Skyler Ralstin chased down a shot in the gap robbing Goddard of a double and preventing two runs from scoring in the second.
They weren’t so lucky in the third as Aspen Windesheim reached on a fielders choice, Madison Mifsud singled to left and Lauren Wexler singled to right to load the bases. Destiny Pacetti sac fly to center scored Windesheim to incease the lead to 4-1.
Lambrecht led off the fourth with a towering shot to dead center that Kayla Bagley reached over the wall and caught robbing Lambrecht of an apparent home run. The momentum was short lived though as Goddard doubled to right with two outs and scored on Agurkis RBI single to right for a 5-1 lead.
A four run sixth put it away for Oakleaf as Koskey 2 RBI doubled to left scoring Kistler and Lambrecht and Agurkis followed with a 2 RBI double down the left field line scoring Goddard and Koskey for a 9-1 lead.
While the offense was attacking Guider, starter Madiisyn Davis was busy shutting down a potent 1-5 lineup that averaged .393 and combined for 152 RBI’s yet held them to a combined 4 for 14 and no RBI’s and just five total hits.
Cambria Arturo entered the game in the seventh and retired the side with two strikeouts and a fly out to center, which ended the game and sent the home Knights back to Vero Beach again.
For an offense that had been struggling lately, it picked the perfect time to come out of the funk with 13 hits and 9 runs, it’s most since a 10-0 win over Atlantic Coast in the District 2-8A title game.
None were bigger than Agurkis, who led the host Knights going 3 for 3 with 5 RBI’s along with Kistler (3 for 4), Lambrecht (2 for 4), Koskey (1 for 2, 2 RBI), Wexler (1 for 1), Mifsud (1 for 3) and Goddard (2 for 4).
Agurkis, who laid down the squeeze bunt in the sixth in the come from behind win over Fleming Island in the District 2-8A semifinals, showed off her power tonight. Which begs the question did she do anything different ?
“I did I got chicken tenders today,” Agurkis joked. “I just came into the game with the mindset this is my last home game and tonight is my night. We took the scouting report on them and I did what I had to do. She threw me a flat rise ball and I turned on it.”
Oakleaf, which had struggled the last few games, finally was able to break out of their shell and show off their offense.
“I told them we were not changing anything, we’ve been hammering to them no such thing as a big game, we play better this way so we keep things the same,” Oakleaf coach Christina Thompson said.
No rest for the worry though as Oakleaf (28-2), winners of 20 straight games, gets a rematch with Lakewood Ranch in the Class 8A state semi-finals Friday night in Dodgertown in Vero Beach.
